This is unfortunate. I suppose this puts me in the minority, since I think “harsh interrogation techniques” is a newspeak term-of-art for torture.

Meanwhile, the normally-hawkish Christopher Hitchens applauded the president for citing Winston Churchill’s “no torture” stance during the Nazis’ bombing of London during the second world war in this article in Slate.

The disparity between the supporters of “enhanced interrogation” and “torture” underscores the efficacy of a good PR campaign.